Overview

• The Council scheduled the New York meeting for Friday at Venezuela’s request after Caracas alleged an unprecedented U.S. military buildup near its coast.
• Venezuela’s letter cites missile destroyers, combat aircraft, elite troops and a nuclear submarine near its waters, which it says endanger the region’s peace.
• U.S. officials describe the deployments as counter-narcotics operations; President Donald Trump boasted at the UN that the strikes left “no more boats” in that area.
• Recent maritime actions reportedly destroyed at least four boats and left 21 people dead, while a Pentagon report to Congress has been cited to support the legal basis for the operations.
• Caracas reported a suspected plot to bomb its embassy in the capital and ordered permanent military exercises and reserve enlistment, as Brazil’s Lula is expected to caution Trump that direct interference could trigger a humanitarian crisis, according to Brazilian interlocutors.